บท 74: Ch 74. Iwanaga Kotoko Advances
Yukinoshita took the bottle, lifted her slender neck, and drank it all in a few gulps.
Drinking water in a dream isn't due to physical dehydration but a psychological thirst. It always feels like one should drink some water to recover after such intense exercise.
"How do you feel?" Hoshimi, sitting next to Yukinoshita, asked.
"Great. Winning the mixed doubles championship should be easy." Yukinoshita confidently played with the empty can.
In just three days of dream training, her tennis skills had improved significantly. She had mastered several tricky serving techniques and had also made considerable progress in returning the ball through repeated practice matches.
Additionally, Hoshimi's performance had also been impressive. His talent was unexpectedly high. In just three days, Hoshimi had moved past the beginner stage and become quite proficient in the strategies and techniques of tennis matches.
Together, she and Hoshimi had defeated three mixed doubles pairs! It's worth noting that the pairs Hoshimi copied into the dream were all from TV, which likely represented the highest level of mixed doubles in their respective schools.
Defeating three such pairs in just three days was simply unbelievable!
"Yukinoshita, I wasn't talking about that."
"Huh? Then what are you asking about?" Yukinoshita's intense gaze locked onto Hoshimi as her thoughts were interrupted.
Hoshimi conjured a can of coconut water, drinking as he asked, "I meant your ankle. How is it recovering?"
"It's fine. There's no major issue now, just a bit of lingering pain when I walk quickly."
"Really? In that case, you should avoid smash shots to prevent re-injury."
"..." Yukinoshita frowned without responding.
"What? Didn't learn your lesson? Forgot how you sprained it in the first place?" Hoshimi looked at Yukinoshita with a smirk.
"Hmph! I don't need your reminders; I'll be careful."
"Good, that's what I wanted to hear." Hoshimi stood up, stretching his body. "Let's meet downstairs later to get used to it and find our rhythm before heading to school. If I remember correctly, the mixed doubles tennis preliminaries start at 10 AM. It'll be troublesome if we don't adapt in advance and something goes wrong."
"Yes, I understand."
"See you later then."
As soon as he finished speaking, the dream shattered, and both Hoshimi and Yukinoshita woke up simultaneously.
They almost synchronously sat up, threw off their blankets, and headed to the bathroom to wash up.
...
Meanwhile, Iwanaga Kotoko, having finally finished her arbitration work, returned exhausted to her villa.
It wasn't easy, but she had managed to return before the Sobu High Tennis Tournament started.
From what Isshiki Iroha said, Hoshimi was participating in ping pong, badminton, and mixed doubles tennis.
Amazing, she could finally witness Hoshimi's prowess in real life.
However...
Kotoko stood in front of the mirror, speechless at her own appearance.
After several days and nights of non-stop arbitration, her short hair was as messy as a fluffed-up owl's, and her usually bright and supple skin had dulled.
Her white dress was stained with dirt, and her usual reddish-brown cane looked battered.
Her normal left eye was bloodshot, while her artificial right eye remained bright, making the contrast quite eerie.
Ah~~ I can't let Hoshimi see me like this.
Although that heartless guy is a flirt, he still has some human emotions.
If he saw her like this, he would undoubtedly ask questions, and she would have a hard time explaining.
So, she decided to rest for a while, recover a bit, and let the redness in her eyes subside.
Then, she would dress up a bit more ladylike and elegantly before meeting Hoshimi.
"Ha~~~ good night~~"
Yawning, Kotoko closed her eyes and fell backward.
As she was about to hit the floor, two cute, fist-sized little spirits appeared suddenly. One grabbed her sleeve from above, while the other supported her back, preventing her from hitting the ground.
But being small spirits, their strength was limited. Despite their best efforts, Kotoko continued to slowly sink towards the floor.
"Squeak~ squeak~"
The two little spirits chirped anxiously, seemingly conveying some message.
The next moment, the window opened, and a large skeletal hand reached in, lifting Kotoko and placing her on the bed.
The two little spirits flew over as well, tucking Kotoko in and carefully smoothing the covers.
After ensuring everything was in order, the skeletal hand withdrew, and the two little spirits followed, closing the window behind them before disappearing into the air.
In the quiet bedroom, only Kotoko's long, steady breathing remained.
...
At 10 AM, the mixed doubles tennis event at Sobu High's sports tournament began as scheduled.
Eight pairs were participating in the mixed doubles. From morning to afternoon, the preliminaries would determine the top four pairs who would advance to the elimination rounds the next day.
The preliminaries divided the eight pairs into two groups, with a round-robin format within each group. The top two pairs from each group would advance to the elimination round.
To save time and consider the students' stamina, the preliminaries used a one-set match format, giving students ample recovery time.
The elimination rounds would be best-of-three sets, with the semifinals in the morning and the finals in the afternoon.
Due to the low number of participants, the mixed doubles used a group stage plus elimination format to give each pair a sense of involvement.
For events with more participants, like singles, a direct elimination format was used from start to finish.
"Yukino, are you ready?"
In front of everyone, Hoshimi extended his hand to Yukinoshita with a gentle smile.
"...Yes."
Instinctively, Yukinoshita reached out to shake Hoshimi's hand but then realized something was off. She instead took out her racket and placed it in Hoshimi's hand.
She took the other racket and walked ahead to the tennis court.
Hoshimi smiled subtly and followed her, walking side by side.
In the shade of a nearby tree, Yukinoshita Haruno watched her sister walk towards the court with another man, smiling.
"Haruno, how do you feel?"
Next to her, Hiratsuka Shizuka, wearing a white trench coat, asked with a peculiar look.
"Nothing much." Haruno maintained her friendly smile, unchanged.
"Oh? Really? Then why are you clenching your fist?" Hiratsuka's expression grew even more peculiar, with a hint of schadenfreude.
"Huh? Shizuka, you must be mistaken. Why would I be clenching my fist?" Haruno's smile turned slightly stiff as she playfully patted Hiratsuka's shoulder.
"Hehe~" Hiratsuka brushed off Haruno's hand. "Just see for yourself. Don't do anything rash. I have work now, so I'm off."
With that, Hiratsuka walked away, leaving Haruno in the shade, watching the radiant Hoshimi and Yukinoshita on the tennis court.
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